A man apparently prompted an international rescue when he tried to swim across the Detroit River from Canada to the U.S. / File photo by Romain Blanquart/Detroit Free Press

Written by

Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

Canadian authorities are weighing whether to assess additional penalties against a 47-year-old Windsor man who said he swam across the Detroit River late Monday and was picked up by a U.S. Coast Guard boat during a search-and-rescue operation early Tuesday, according to Windsor police spokeswoman Sgt. Pam Mizuno.

The man was arrested by Windsor police and cited for being intoxicated in a public place, which is equivalent to getting a ticket. A friend had called for help after she lost sight of the man in the water.

The Windsor Star identified the man as John Morillo, who did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

“I was drinking, but I wasn’t really drunk. The thing is, I’ve been telling people I’m going to swim across the river for years and they’re like, ‘Yeah, yeah, blah, blah, you can’t make it.’ So, I don’t know, last night I just decided it was the time to go,” Morillo told the paper on Tuesday.

The paper reported that the man swam from an area near the Hiram Walker distillery in Windsor to the Renaissance Center, climbed up a ladder and then swam back. The man told the paper that “he was just about to climb back on shore in Windsor when officers came up in a boat and told him to get out of the water.” Authorities said he was picked up by the U.S. Coast Guard on the Canadian side in an area west of Cobo Center. Mizuno said police do not know whether the man swam all the way across the river.

Officials are concerned about the precedent the stunt could set. Canada has regulations that prohibit swimming in a shipping channel, and David Cree, president and CEO of the Windsor Port Authority, said that various agencies are reviewing the case.

Cree said there is a possibility the man could be assessed for the cost of the effort to retrieve him. He did not know how much that could be.

Mizuno said she was unaware of any similar attempts to swim across the river.

“It’s extremely dangerous to swim in the Detroit River,” she said, noting the strong current. “That guy’s lucky to be alive.”